<p>@fallenchemist - in the old days MIT, for example, reduced financial aid one for one (i.e. every dollar in scholarship resulted in a dollar reduction in their grant). That served as a disincentive for students to apply for them. Then the formula changed so that the reduction was more like 50 cents for every dollar. Now the formula has changed again to make tuition free for families whose income is under $75K which is much easier for many families to digest. MIT doesn’t do merit aid only need-based aid so our system is a bit different than my children’s universities.</p>
<p>Still, while it’s not shocking that schools reduce their grants - I just don’t think people who are new to the process expect it. “Get scholarships” has always tended to be interpreted as “in addition to”. </p>
<p>Since our child was attending a rigorous college prep program we asked her to focus on academics rather than another college’s admonition to apply for 5 scholarships a day. Several of her friends who attended a local school were trying to do that and it was a lot of paperwork for not much gain. So when talking to my daughter’s FA department we were told the effort (in our case) wasn’t worth it because it would reduce her grants and work study and not result in a net “win” for her unless the scholarship award was huge or prestigious.</p>
<p>As @Mom2aphysicsgeek suggested though - it IS worth it if the scholarships are sufficiently large. A local student asked me to write her recommendation for a foundation scholarship that had a net award of $30,000 each year and she was that year’s recipient. A huge coup for a hardworking, bright young woman. But even as a recommender, it took a half hour for me to get through all the bells and whistles required to submit my report and fill out their own forms. </p>
<p>For most middle class families who don’t qualify for full aid and can’t write the full check - the competition for limited dollars is fierce and the individual amounts are relatively low enough that a cost/benefit (or time/value) analysis is often warranted. How much time does it take from academics to complete and what’s the net gain? </p>
<p>In the end families are faced with tough choices and if applying for lots of scholarships makes sense - I think they go for it. We’re signed up for Fastweb and certain see enough of them land in our inbox each day. Good luck for those in the running!</p>